Chapter Fifteen: Fire

After a relaxing make out session in the building's garage, Carly made her way upstairs. In the elevator, she ran into Freddie. He had to be following her again. It riled her to think he was being possessive again. How many times had she told him they were only friends? She was happy with Griffin, and her moody 'friend' was still acting all love-struck!

"Carly, wait…" He grabbed her arm.

She shoved him away, "I don't want to hear it! Shove off!" He hit his door with a thud. She cringed since she had not intended to shove him that hard, "Freddie, I-" He went in and slammed the door behind him.

Great, back to square one with him. Next time they saw each other Freddie would be back to Sir Sulks Inthedark

Carly arrived home to find Spencer waiting for her, "Carly hi! You've got a message from that psychology professor dude!"

Carly read the e-mail. He wanted to see her next week Monday. She agreed to meet him at a public park. Sam met Carly in her room.

"Hey, how'd it go?"

Not a detail was spared. Sam was impressed that her friend had opened up so much, "So… is this the uh… guy to do the deal? The one to, you know," She made a thrusting motion, "Lancelot your maiden?"

Carly paled and blushed at the same time. She sighed, and then told Sam about her run-in with Freddie, "Are you going to tell me that's okay? He might have been following me all night!"

Her friend surprised her, "Carly, we've been friends for a long time now. Heck, I know you better than anyone. For once though, I'm going to side with Freddie. Yes, he is a total stalker, but… we don't know what he was going to say. What if he wanted to open up?"

They both discussed all the possible alternatives the night could have taken. Sam decided to stay over.

A week later, Carly still was not talking to Freddie. He had disappeared almost completely. She still went to see Doctor Hammond about what he knew about the Institute.

The park was a clear green, absolutely fresh. Carly seated herself and waited for the man to show himself. While waiting, a golden retriever came bounding up. He was a happy dog, rolling amicably. His right eye was murky, obviously blind, so the girl avoided touching him on that side.

"You're smart for an American girl," Doctor Hammond motioned and the dog went to his side, "I am Doctor Hammond, how can I help you?"

Carly explained her situation with Freddie, "I can't help but think I have no clue what's going on in his head!"

The doctor laughed at her while petting his dog. He took a moment to explain, "My grandfather was a Soviet scientist trying to create ultimate human during the Cold War. They had tried breeding programs, but nothing panned out. An athlete and a rocket scientist having regular children killed the work. Still, as time moved on, my grandfather had a spectacular idea. He took the lowest of the crop; losers, ignorant weaklings, and he pitted them against one another mercilessly," He stared off coldly. Carly's father got the same look when talking about war zones.

"What happened?"

"The weak ones got stronger. 'It is not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog.' This is the theme that the Institute uses. Right now, they are training a private army of soldiers. Your friend is part of this army," The dog rested at his feet.

"Is he going to be okay?"
The doctor shook his head, "Freddie is like a fighting dog. They cage them and beat them, all in an attempt to make them meaner. Well, it also makes them unstable. But with a little love…" The dog rolled on its back to have its stomach scratched, "My father did not understand love. But it is important. Take Fido here. He was abused, but with love and attention, he is very friendly. Freddie is the same way. He needs someone to take the fight out of him."

The problem was that Carly had no idea how to do that.

...

Carly arrived home to find Spencer in a suit, "Who died?" She asked jokingly.

"Mrs. Benson, didn't Freddie tell you the funeral was today?" He looked at her quizzically. His sister's head thumped stupidly on the counter. That was probably what he was trying to tell her the other night. She felt so stupid.

Her phone rang. It was Griffin. Wow… this was horrible timing. She sighed and text him explaining she would be busy tonight.

Carly got ready for the funeral. She slipped into a black dress with short heels. Her hair hung low. Looking at herself in a mirror, the girl decided that tonight she would just be there for Freddie however she could.

The Shays arrived late. Freddie was already done with his eulogy and already shaking hands. His face was dead. No emotion at all was shown. The crowd thinned out. Griffin stood in a corner with Jonah. Freddie was handed an urn, and he set it down.

Carly waited until he was alone before talking to him. She stood behind him waiting. He had not turned yet. Carly stood quietly at his back, waiting for what she knew had to be coming. As if on cue, he stood straight and stiffened. His nose took note of her scent. Freddie inhaled deeply, taking comfort in the fruit and pina colada smell.

She stepped up behindo him and put a hand on his shoulder. Freddie shoved her aside and left. He was the Good Wolf now. He had business to attend to.

Chapter Sixteen: Fire

Carly woke to the smell of smoke. She bolted awake coughing.

Crawling from her bed, the girl made her way down the hallway to the stairs. From there she made her way to the hallway. The air was clogged making it difficult to breath. Panting, the girl made her way to the stairs to see the bottom floor in flames, "Oh no…!"

There was no escape. A firm hand grabbed her and hauled her to the elevator, "Griffin?"

The door slid open and the two dropped down the shaft. Carly grunted as her rescuer snagged the ropes. Carly gasped as she recognized her rescuer, "Freddie?!"

Freddie was grunting with effort climbing down. His friend held onto him breathlessly. Finally, he made his way to another floor where they could get out. The fire department showed up with an ambulance.

"Oh no… Spencer…"

Carly had to sit around answering questions. Freddie had disappeared as quickly as he had appeared.

She was told that Spencer had been seriously hurt during the blaze. He had been taken to a nearby hospital. Though in critical condition, his chances for recovery were good. The police explained that some faulty wiring from his motorcycle plus some old materials from his work were at fault. They asked if he had been working on it lately. She answered them ignorantly; no one had touched it but Spencer as far as she knew.

Finally Agent Bob got to ask her some questions. After giving her his card, he began talking about her relationship with Freddie. He seemed to be sure that Spencer's accident was arson. He was also curious as to whether or not she knew what Freddie had been up to, "Listen to me; I've been investigating this school for years. They are mass-producing terrorist cells for hire. Three kids in a cell, plus the leader. Freddie is one, as is his new friend Jonah. I'm putting pressure on the third."

Carly wondered what constituted 'pressure' under the FBI's jurisdiction. Bob continued, "The Dean is in town, and I'm hoping he'll slip up. I'll bust him and prove that this whole thing is a conspiracy. Keep an eye on Freddie."

With that, he left. Once all the government personnel had filed out, someone returned to her.

"Hey Carly," Freddie stood in the doorway nervously. He shifted, as if afraid she may hurt him, "Do you need someplace to stay tonight?"

Whether because of Agent Bob, or Spencer, or some desire to get closer to her friend, the girl agreed. She crept into the apartment, afraid of brushing up the darkness that had touched her friend so.

Freddie had brought her bed in. It was fit for a princess, "Thanks." He nodded and turned to leave, "Wait!" She was scared of what was happening, "Could you… I mean, I don't want to be alone…"

He nodded, unsure. Carly swept back the cover and cuddled in. Freddie knelt by her feet, watching her, "I'll be here while you rest, and make sure you are safe until you wake up." He said this with a calm ferocity.

She knew her friend would keep his word. Some part of Carly, a very naught part, wanted to take him underneath the sheets, wanted him to stay vigilant to her all night in an entirely different way, wanted very much to have this man end her virgin curse. But… it would be cheating. Griffin was not lying to her, was not using her, so why would she do that to him?
This only confused her more. Her life had become too complicated too quickly.

Slowly, like an ember burning out, Carly shay went to sleep.

The girl dreamt of fire, and of a shadowy figure coming to her. He was burning up himself, but he was saving her. Carly could not tell whether it was Griffin or Freddie.

A.N. No more updates 'til I get a review. No, it's not fair, but, c'mon, I would like to hear where you think this is going.